The telephone rang three times before Janice picked it up with a sigh of exasperation. "Hello?" It was 8 o' clock in the evening on Saturday, and Janice had just eaten dinner, which was another crappy, half-burnt pizza.

A man's voice rasped, "Hello, Janice. Remember me?" Janice nearly choked on the smoke of her lit cigarette when she realized who was on the other end of the line.

"Dave? Dave Malley, is that you?" Janice felt a cold lump of fear form in her throat, suffocating her as the man laughed menacingly.

"I'm out of jail, Janice. I'm free. And I'm coming back."

Click. The phone line went dead. Janice shakily slid to the floor, holding the phone against her chest. She could almost picture Dave, his nicotine-stained hands slapping her mother, manhandling Jake, slamming the doors shut. His leering sneer and his cold eyes, bloodshot from alcohol and cigarette smoke. Barb Rosen could have done a hundred, no, a thousand times better than crazy old Dave Malley. She had divorced him for the last time six months ago. Not Dave…He can't come back…He's supposed to be in jail…he can't…he shouldn't…Janice was in too much of a panic-induced haze to think clearly. After Barb had divorced Dave, he had gone ballistic, trying to break into a bank after he had done several lines of cocaine and gotten himself drunk with too much beer and whiskey. After the police found Dave surrounded with broken glass and breath that reeked of drugs and alcohol, they sent him off to court. He received 10 to 15 years in prison and a lifetime of parole. But after his life-saving mother found out, she paid his bail, and Dave was free to run around, doing whatever the hell he pleased. Obviously, Janice and Barb couldn't have known that Dave was out of jail. As far as they had been concerned, Dave was ancient history, rotting away in an old prison cell.

Before the phone call, Janice's life was perfect. She had an apartment all to herself and had found a job as a barista at a local café-she hated that place, but at least it brought in some cash. She had quit doing coke a while ago and had gone back to pot and cigarettes. Janice paid her rent, and stayed out all night at clubs and sneaked into bars. She drank a lot and puked it out in the bathrooms later. She was a party girl. There was no Sebastian and no Leland to worry about. Best of all, there was no Dave.

Until now. Dave was coming back, to shatter the life she'd made for herself. And as far as Janice knew, there was nothing she could do to stop him.

Janice eventually picked herself up off the floor and slowly made her way to the bedroom. She collapsed onto her bed and curled into a pile of soft blankets. She tried to sleep, but her hammering heart kept her awake. She stared into the fuzzy red fabric of a blanket, thinking about nothing in particular.

Her thoughts eventually (and without a doubt in her screwed-up mind they'd be heading there) made their way to Dave. Keeping him out of her apartment wasn't Janice's concern. She did own a shotgun and two revolvers, and had a full box of ammo-stashed in a different place, obviously. No, her worry was for her mother and especially for Jake because they had no way to protect themselves from Dave, that home-wrecking bastard. Barb had said, "There's no way that I'm going to have a gun in the house. Not while Jake is this young. And since Dave is in jail, I don't really need one, Janice."

If Dave even tries to touch Jake, I swear to God I will kill him, Janice thought murderously. All he needs is a foot in the door, and it'll be nearly impossible to get him back out…

Janice stared at the ceiling until her vision blurred with tears. She had to warn them about Dave's comeback; it was the only way of keeping Jake safe. "Jake…Oh, Jake!" Janice adored her 2-and-a-half-year-old half-brother. The thought of Dave hurting Jake like he used to was too much to bear, and Janice's tears fell harder, faster. She thought about calling her mother, but for some reason she couldn't bring herself to do it.

Janice eventually fell asleep around midnight, but it was a fitful sleep, interrupted with nightmares of Dave, Jake, and Barb. They seemed to be talking to her, but she couldn't make out what they were saying. She slept and woke in turns, twitching and moaning in her sleep. She dreamt of Dave kidnapping Jake and hurting her mother, breaking her again. She dreamt of her old friends; doing coke with Sebastian and that one try with angel dust in the East Village Squats. She dreamt of smoking cigarettes out the window with Genie and Baby Vondell; smoking as many joints as she could before returning to the shelter to deceive the nuns. She dreamt of her old, broken home life the most. The memories were faded and blurred. Janice's dreams were put together in a way that mimicked watching a movie about a long-time friend. A same who seemed to fit in, but one who was always oddly misplaced at the same time.

Janice awoke many hours later, and sunlight was streaming through her window and onto her face, as if the world hadn't a care for her woes. It doesn't. She blinked her eyes and shook her head to clear the grogginess of the morning hangover. She went out to the kitchen because she felt like a starving street dog. She looked at the wall clock, reading 12:35 PM on its face. Janice opened the fridge, looking for some leftover food that she could eat. Nothing looked appetizing at the moment, so she turned away, even though her stomach was growling. She walked over to the coffee table and nearly fainted.

There was a mirror, a razor blade, several plastic bendy straws, a grinder, a scale, and a small tin of cocaine. All the stuff that she and Sebastian had thrown out after swearing to never do cocaine again. And next to the table…sat Dave.

Dave laughed. He laughed and laughed and laughed. He had that sneer on his face; it looked like someone had permanently frozen it, like when mothers tell their children not to make faces because they'd end up like that. He was holding a cigarette and an ashtray sat on his thigh. He looked at Janice and laughed even harder. He raised a nicotine-stained finger and pointed at Janice, wagging it in a no, no, you did wrong fashion. Dave stood up and walked over to her, setting the ashtray on the table. He got so close that she could smell his disgusting breath. He said into her ear, "Well, well, well. Look who we have here. If it isn't Janice, here in her own little apartment. You seem to be doing pretty well off, little girl. Well, I've come home. Old Barb didn't let me in her apartment, so I decided to come here. Looks like you'll be living with me for a while, Princess."

Janice screamed; it was bloodcurdling and echoed in her ears. It was still dark outside, and the moon let in a soft glow through her window. She was drenched in sweat, blood pounding in her ears.. She felt wired, like she'd just done several lines of coke. She laid back against the headboard and tried to calm her racing heart. I just need…just need to calm down…it was only a dream…just a dream…a horrible, sick, twisted dream, that's what it was. I need…to calm down…need to just…slow down, and think… Janice sat in bed until her thudding heart had slowed down and her pulse was almost normal. Then she slowly stood up and crossed the room to the closed bedroom door. She put her hand on the door handle and braced herself for what she almost believed would be there. For who she believed would be standing there.

Janice creaked open her bedroom door and went out into the kitchen. She looked at the wall clock; it read 3:45 AM in proud, red lighting. So far, so good. Janice gritted her teeth and steeled herself right before she turned around. She half expected Dave to be there, cigarette in hand, next to the coffee table. But when she turned around, Dave wasn't there. The coffee table was vacant; no mirror, no blades, no straws, no cocaine. The couch was empty, and the room was lit by artificial light instead of natural sunlight. Janice let out a sigh of relief; she hadn't realized she'd been holding her breath. It had all been a nightmare. A grotesque, hideous nightmare. She knew she was too jittery to simply go back to sleep, so she took out some leftover Chinese food and sat down at the coffee table. She flipped on the TV and turned to a channel with that was showing a stupid sitcom. She sat there, not touching her food, barely watching the TV. Janice turned off the TV at 6:00, put away the uneaten food, and slowly returned to her bedroom.

What am I supposed to do? Janice thought bitterly, smacking the wall in frustration. What do I know about Dave? She nursed her throbbing hand as she thought. Okay, let's see. He's a psycho lunatic out to get revenge on Mom. He won't stop at anything until he gets his measure of revenge, and I can't really stop him unless I use a gun. And even after all the hell he's brought, I don't necessarily want to kill the guy. Oh God, I'm in a hellhole now…The hellhole of Dave Malley, certified lunatic on the loose…

Janice eventually decided to call her mother. At least that would get her somewhere. She dialed the number on her cell phone, but before she pressed the call button, she thought, And what if Dave is already there, hmm? What are you going to do then, Janice? He won't listen to you, he won't listen to Mom…He's crazy, he's psychotic, he's…he's Dave, for God sakes…She argued with herself. And what if he's not there yet? Mom and Jake don't have any idea that he's coming. So what if this phone call saves their lives? If you don't call, how are you going to feel if this call can save them both?...I'd feel like shit, that's how I'd feel…

Janice eventually pressed the call button, and listened to it ring. After two rings, her mother picked up. "Hello?"

"Hi, Mom?"

"Oh, hi Janice. How are you doing?" She sounded so wonderfully carefree. Janice hated to put a screeching end to that.

"Um, Mom, I need to talk to you, face to face…it's something extremely important…"

"Okay, then." And the first horrible thought that came to mind was… "Wait, you're not, you know, pregnant, are you? If you are, I mean, that's your decision and I know nothing I say is going to change your mind, but you're only eighteen, and I-,"

"Mom! I'm not pregnant! But it's something else…" god, how she didn't ever want these words to be said.

"Mom, Dave…somehow he got my apartment phone's number, and he said he's coming back. He said he's coming here…"

Ten minutes later, Janice found herself at her mother's doorbell, ringing it. A few second later, Barb found herself opening the door and leading Janice to the kitchen table. She gave Janice a cup of coffee and pulled out her cigarettes and an ashtray; Janice did the same. Her mother looked at the cigarettes and said, "Jan, I wish you wouldn't."

Janice shrugged and said, "Yeah, but I do, so that's that." The air above them was filled with smoke as they began to talk.

Barb spoke first. "So, Dave's coming back? After I filed the divorce papers, I thought he would stay away. And then with the attempt at robbery, and all the drug abuse…"

Janice said, "I know, Mom, I know. And he called me and not you, which means he wants this to be a huge shock. Which also means I'll have hell to pay when he shows up because I'm warning you about this." Barb sighed. It was the sigh that said, Well, we're really screwed now, so let's just try to make the best of it.

"Dave's coming back. Well, we better get ready."

Janice looked at her mother with surprise clear on her face. "But Mom, you always said we don't need to worry ever since Dave was put in jail."

"I know, honey, but sometimes we just have to act on impulse. Ever since the police report came out in the paper, I started thinking maybe I should follow your lead and get a gun. Maybe even two. Just to be safe."

"Mom, you don't-,"

"Oh yes, I have a gun. It's nothing like a shotgun. It's a Colt, something small that I can actually use. I bought it after Dave was jailed, just in case he ever got out and decided to come around."

She looked at her daughter with a look of determination set hard in her eyes like concrete. "Jan, come with me. We've got a lot to do if we want to make sure Dave never sets foot near this apartment."